Just Bought a House
With Solar Panels?
No documentation, no monitoring access, no idea what brand it is or whether it's working properly. This is the starting point for most new solar homeowners. Here's exactly what to do — and in what order. Once you're set up, the new solar owner hub covers everything you need to know going forward.
Our New Owner Health Check covers system identification, monitoring transfer, MCS documentation, performance review, and a written condition report — in a single remote session.
New Owner Health Check — from £145 → Book a call to discuss →We've helped hundreds of new solar homeowners understand what they've inherited. Most complete their onboarding in a single session.
The 4 things to do in your first week
You don't need to understand every detail of the system to take these steps. They establish what you have, whether it's working, and give you the foundation to deal with anything that comes later.
The inverter is usually mounted on a wall in the garage, utility room, or loft. Find the label on the front or side and note the brand name and model number. Take a photo. This single piece of information unlocks everything — monitoring setup, warranty registration, fault code lookup, and configuration guides are all brand-specific.
During daylight hours, look at the inverter display. A number with "W" or "kW" means the system is generating. A blank display (before sunrise or after sunset) is normal. A fault code, red light, or completely unresponsive unit needs investigation. Do not rely on the monitoring app — it will almost always show "offline" because access is linked to the previous owner's account, not yours.
This should have been provided to you at completion. Check your property documents pack. If it wasn't included, contact your solicitor — they should have received it. If it's missing entirely, we can usually retrieve it from the MCS database using the installation postcode and approximate date. Without it, warranty claims and SEG tariff registration are blocked.
Every monitoring platform has a process for transferring accounts to new homeowners. You'll need proof of ownership (a completion letter or Land Registry document). Start this process early — some brands take 1–2 weeks to process account transfers, and without it you have no visibility into how the system is performing. See the monitoring transfer section below for brand-specific instructions.
Note: If the system appears to have a battery (a separate unit, usually floor-standing or wall-mounted near the inverter), its setup and configuration are almost always locked to the previous owner's account and app. This is separate from inverter monitoring — see the battery setup section for what to do.
Don't know what brand or model you have?
The brand name is almost always on a label on the inverter itself. If you can't find it — or the system looks unfamiliar — these guides walk you through identification by appearance, wiring colour, and display type.
Not sure what brand you have? Three identification routes — label, monitoring app, MCS certificate — plus how to read the label, check for a battery unit, and a visual reference for all 10+ major UK brands.
Identify my system →Not all systems have a battery. How to tell from the physical installation, the wiring, and the inverter display whether your system includes battery storage and what type it is.
Check for battery →The installation date affects warranty status, FiT eligibility, panel degradation estimates, and expected performance. How to find it from the MCS certificate, inverter label, or MCS public register.
Find installation date →Know your brand? Go to the right hub
Monitoring is locked to the previous owner — here's how to get it back
Solar monitoring accounts are registered to individuals, not properties. When you buy a house, the monitoring app will show "offline", "no device found", or simply never load — because the data link still points to an account you don't have access to. You need to request a transfer from the manufacturer. Each brand has a different process.
What "offline" actually means on an inherited system, and the full process for claiming monitoring access — including what documentation manufacturers require and typical timescales for each brand.
Get monitoring access →We contact the manufacturer on your behalf, provide the required ownership proof, and complete the transfer into your account. Faster, fewer rejections, and we know exactly what each brand needs.
Use transfer service →Some manufacturers require the original account holder to approve a transfer. If the previous owner is uncontactable, there are alternative routes — including direct manufacturer escalation and account reset processes.
Resolve blocked transfer →Brand-specific monitoring transfer guides
Included as part of the New Owner Health Check. Or book as a standalone service — typically resolved in 2–5 working days.
MCS certificate, warranties, and what should have been handed over
Solar installations generate a paper trail that's essential for warranty claims, export tariff registration, and future sale. Most of it should have transferred with the property. A lot of it doesn't. Here's what to look for and what to do if it's missing.
The MCS certificate proves your system was installed to standard. Inverter warranties run 5–12 years, batteries 5–10, panels 10–25. How to search the MCS database, find out what warranty remains, check whether it transfers to a new owner, and what to do if records are missing.
Check documentation & warranty →If the previous owner was on the Feed-in Tariff (FiT) or Smart Export Guarantee (SEG), those payments don't transfer automatically. What to do to register your own SEG contract and whether the previous FiT payments can be continued.
Sort export payments →Documents that should have been provided at completion
Found something wrong — or not sure if it's working correctly?
Inherited systems sometimes have faults that were never reported or diagnosed by the previous owner — either because they didn't notice, or because the fault appeared gradually. A Health Check identifies these. But if you've already found something specific, these pages are the right starting point.
System is on but showing zero output, or inverter is showing an error and won't start. Common causes on inherited systems include long-dormant fault codes, tripped breakers, and failed components that were unreported by the previous owner.
Diagnose this →If the system was installed 5+ years ago or has panels in a compromised position, output may be significantly below what its rated capacity suggests. How to compare current output to expected output and what to do if there's a meaningful gap.
Assess performance →Covers every fault type — inverter faults, battery problems, monitoring offline, grid overvoltage, and export issues. If you've already identified the fault category, go here for detailed diagnosis steps.
Go to full fault guide →A New Owner Health Check reviews the system systematically — generation data, fault history, settings, and hardware — and produces a written condition report. From £145.
Inherited a battery? It needs to be reconfigured for you
Battery storage systems are configured around the previous owner's energy tariff, usage patterns, and preferences. Those settings are almost certainly wrong for you. Charge and discharge schedules, tariff integration, and emergency power settings all need to be reviewed and updated before the battery will work correctly in your situation.
What settings need to change when you take over a property with a battery: charge windows, discharge targets, tariff integration, minimum SoC, and emergency power (EPS) settings. We review and reconfigure all of this as part of the New Owner Health Check.
Book battery setup →Battery appears to charge or discharge at the wrong times, or not at all. Almost always a configuration issue tied to the previous owner's settings — specifically charge windows, tariff schedules, or minimum SoC levels that no longer match your situation.
Diagnose battery fault →If you've never had a battery before, this guide explains charge/discharge logic, BMS behaviour, SoC thresholds, and tariff integration — so you can understand what your battery is actually doing and why.
Read guide →We review and update charge/discharge schedules, tariff integration, and emergency power settings as part of the onboarding session. Available as a standalone service too.
The New Owner Health Check covers everything in a single session
Rather than working through each step manually, the Health Check brings everything together: system identification, monitoring transfer, MCS documentation check, current performance review, battery configuration, and a written condition report that you own and can use for future warranty or sale purposes.
For properties with solar only (no battery). Covers system ID, monitoring transfer, MCS check, and performance review.
Book Solar Health Check — £145 →For properties with solar and a battery. Adds battery reconfiguration, tariff integration, and EPS settings review.
Book with Battery Setup — £179 →Remote session. Written report delivered within 24 hours. All brands supported.
Prefer an engineer to come to your home?
Our on-site walk-through (£295) covers everything in the remote health check — plus a physical inspection of your panels, inverter, isolators, and cabling, WiFi and monitoring setup on your phone, and a face-to-face controls walk-through so you actually understand how the system works.
The engineer checks for visible faults, confirms the system is generating correctly, sets up your monitoring account, walks you through the app, and provides a written condition report. Currently available across Yorkshire — Barnsley, Sheffield, Leeds, Wakefield, Doncaster, Rotherham, Bradford, Huddersfield, York, Harrogate, and Hull. Remote health check (£145) available nationwide.
On-site walk-through — £295 →Monitoring access locked, no warranty support, orphaned system with no documentation — we handle the full recovery: access transfer, documentation rebuild, warranty claims, and getting you back in control.
Get installer-gone-bust recovery →Full fault triage guide covering every common solar fault type — inverter problems, battery issues, monitoring offline, grid faults, and export problems. The complete diagnostic starting point.
Go to fault guide →Common questions from new solar homeowners
Solar panels are largely maintenance-free — there are no moving parts. However, inverters and batteries benefit from periodic checks: firmware updates, settings reviews, and performance monitoring. Most faults are identified through monitoring data, so getting monitoring access in your name is the most important ongoing maintenance action. An annual health check is recommended for systems with batteries.
Yes — through the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG). You need to apply for a SEG contract with your energy supplier. If the previous owner was on the Feed-in Tariff (FiT), those payments are tied to them personally and do not transfer. SEG is the current scheme for new registrations. You'll need the MCS certificate to register. SEG and FiT registration guide →
Almost certainly not. "No device found" means the monitoring account is registered to the previous owner's email address — and you're logged in as yourself (or not logged in at all). The system is almost certainly generating fine. Check the inverter display directly: if it shows a kW output figure during daylight, the system is working. You just need to complete the monitoring account transfer. Monitoring access guide →
It depends on the brand and warranty type. Manufacturer warranties (inverter and battery hardware) typically transfer with the property, but you usually need to register the transfer to make warranty claims. Installer workmanship warranties may not transfer — they were between the installer and the original customer. Check the warranty documentation provided at completion, or let us verify it as part of a health check. Warranty check guide →
The remote review session takes around 60 minutes. Monitoring transfer requests are submitted during the session but typically take 2–5 working days to process on the manufacturer's side. The written condition report is delivered within 24 hours of the session. For systems where monitoring is inaccessible, we work from the inverter display, any available data, and system specification to complete as much as possible in the first session.
Unsure where to start with your inherited system?
Tell us what you know — brand if you can spot it, whether there's a battery, any fault lights or issues. We'll work out the rest and come back with a clear plan.